Boltless rail-joint.



C. I. RICHARDSON & W. D. HALL.

BOLTLESS RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED 050.15, 1913.

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CHARLES I. RICHARDSON AND WILLIAM E). HALL, OF SHERMAN, TEXAS.

BULTLESS BAIL-JOINT.

Application filed December 15, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, CHAnLEs I. RIGH- ARDSON and WILLIAM D. HALL, citizens of the United States, residing at Sherman, in the county of Grayson and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Boltless Rail-Joints, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a new and useful boltless rail joint. Its object is primarily to provide a simple and effective means for establishing connection between the abutting extremities of two rails, avoiding the use of bolts and nuts.

A further object is to provide a rail joint, in which a strong and durable connection between two abutting rail ends may be easily and quickly established by the use of two fish-plates each having a boltless connection with the correlated rail ends.

Still another object is to provide a rail connection that will prevent lateral and vertical displacement of the two connected rails, and will limit the rails to only such longitudinal displacement as may be necessitated by their expansion.

Finally, the object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described that will be simple, efficient and inexpensive and not likely to get out of working order.

With these and various other objects in view, my invention has relation to certain novel features of the construction and use, an example of which is described in the following specification, and is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view showing my novel rail joint in side elevation. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the same, the section being taken upon the line 'ww of Fig. 1. Fig. 4: is a transverse vertical sectional view taken upon the line w--m of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken upon the line -y of Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a detail view showing in side elevation a tenon which is integrally formed upon the fish-plate of my joint. Fig. 7 is a transverse vertical sectional view of said tenon, the section being taken upon the line ez of Fig. 6.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, wherein like reference characters designate similar parts in all the figures,the numerals 1 and 2 respectively denote two abutting rail ends, which rest upon crossties 3, and are oppositely engaged by fish- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2Q, 1915..

Serial No. 806,702.

plates 4 and 5. Each fish-plate comprises three portions, respectively engaging the rail webs, and the tops and bottoms of the rail bases. The portion of the fish-plate 5 extending beneath the rails, terminates be: neath their common center line, and is denoted by the numeral 6. The bottom portion 7 of the fish-plate 4 extends in contact with the rail bases for half its width, being formed with a shoulder against which the member 6 abuts, the member 7 extending for the other half of its width beneath the memher 6. Adjacent to their outer edges the members 4 and 5 are both respectively formed with lines of depending teeth 8 which are so disposed as to sink into the ties supporting the rail joint, when the joint is spiked down. The spikes 9 at one side of the joint will be driven into the ties through apertures in the outer portion of the fishplate 4c, and at the other side of the joint, the spikes will be driven both through the fish-plate 5 and through the portion 7 of the member 4:.

With the members 4 and 5, there are in tegrally formed headed tenons 10, which project from the interior faces of the webengaging portions of the fish-plates passing through suitable apertures formed in the webs. The arrangement is such that one or more of the tenons formed upon each fishplate engage each of the abutting rail ends. The preferred cross-sectional shape of the tenons 10 is illustrated in Fig. 7. The heads of the tenons 10 are eccentrically disposed relative to the tenons proper, projecting parallel to the rails and oppositely upon the two fish-plates. The apertures through which the tenons 10 are passed are proportioned to admit the heads of the tenons and after the fish-plates have been brought into engagement with the rail ends, they are subjected to a slight displacement parallel to the rails sufficient to engage the heads of the tenons with the rail webs. It is preferred to form the interior faces of the web-engaging portions of the fish-plates with longitudinal channels 11 in which recesses 12 may be formed where necessary to receive the tenon heads. When the fish-plates have been brought into their proper relation with the joined rail ends, and have been spiked to the ties, the rails will be limited to such longitudinal displacement as may be produced by expansion or contraction resulting from changes of atmospheric temperature.

A rail joint embodying the above-described novel features will hold two abutting rail ends in perfect alinement, eliminating the inequality commonly termed a low 7 claim.

What I claim is: Ina device of the character described, the combination with'two abutting rail ends, of V a pair of fish-plates oppositely engaging the same, partially overlapping one another heneath the rail ends, ties upon which both of the fish-platesare rigidly surmounted, and headed tenons rigidly carried by said fishplates, passing through the webs of the joined rail ends, the tenon heads being extended parallel to the rails and in opposite directions on the two fish-plates, the base of both of the fish-plates being formed with depending teeth engaging the ties and fastening means traversing the overlapping parts of the fish plates and entering the ties on one side of the device.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES I. RICHARDSON. WILLIAM D. HALL. "Witnesses:

G. DULANEY, GLADYS Cox.

Copies of this patent may be' obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

